We've all heard it before: "Think PLAYERS, not plays." However, many get over-involved in the schematics of attacking scheme that some very rudimentary things get left out. As a result, things become more complicated than they need to be. If you have a complete passing system that features ways to attack (described here), you don't need a ridiculous looking call sheet:

All kidding aside, I'm sure there's a method to the madness; I just know I could not function with that much "stuff" to look at. While every offseason is spent on the "tweaks" in the system, nothing is as time-consuming as the way I'd like my call sheet to be organized.

We all have the basic listing by play type, situation, and field position; one thing that has become very helpful is a more specfic, organized way to think through the problems (and opportunities) the defense is confronting us with. Below is a snippet of one section of our call sheet, featuring some scenarios vs our basic RT/LT (3x1) sets:

In the top left corner of the section, for example, we have some base calls to go to when we anticipate our single receiver can defeat his single defender. The numbers (76 and 61) represent the wristband numbers to call on the left and right hash marks respectively. Here, we anticipate a strong roll vs bunch, combined with the frontside safety (F) cross-keying #3 on his vertical route. Thus, if the Z can cross the corner's face, there is a potential for an explosive play; if he doesn't, the drag route has plenty of room to work the W.

Conversely, we also prepare for when the matchup favors the defense. Under the heading "SHUTDOWN ON SINGLE", we have base plays prepared to counter this. Below, with the corner over X being the shutdown corner, the defense plays a popular matchup concept: the backside safety (B), middle linebacker (M), and strong linebacker (S) play a triangle over Y and A, with the frontside safety (from the QB read perspective) pushing to the 3 receiver side. We can therefore gain an edge with the W manned up on our B-back, with Y coming in behind:

The above represents just a small sample of basic plays in this system that can be categorized in several different strategic or tactical situations. Many of us have come away from a game having left a "must call" from preparation on the call sheet; the important thing is having the informatio organized in such a way that the play caller can access what he needs under the duress of a close ballgame.